Vegetable gardening is nutritious in both body and mind. It’s exciting to watch a little seed turn into a sprout, then into a small plant, and eventually, into a big ole squash plant that’s bursting with bright yellow gourds and giant green leaves. Digging your hands into cool soil is meditative. Smelling the basil and dill is heavenly. And you don’t have to live on a country estate to grow your own food at home, either.
City dwellers can plant vegetables in patio container gardens. In cold climates, you can start a small garden indoors or even grow vegetables outdoors most of the year if you have a greenhouse.
When it comes to planning a backyard vegetable garden, ideas are easy to come by. There are plenty of pictures of elaborate gardens with rows of sun-ripened tomatoes, entire sections devoted solely to peas, raised beds for root vegetables, and, of course, a fountain and seating area. We don’t all have gigantic yards, though. As nice as it would be to have row after row of heirloom tomatoes and cucumbers, it’s just not realistic when your backyard garden is a two-foot by four-foot rectangle between your driveway and the foundation of your house.
The thing is, you can create a really nice garden in that small rectangle of space. It’s a simple matter of timing, design, and plant selection. But if you have a large backyard, even better!
In the articles below, we dive into everything you need to know about vegetable gardening. You can learn even more in our How to Grow a Vegetable Garden: 10 Things Every Gardener Needs to Know Before Starting a Food Garden freebie. Enjoy!
You read that right. Even though there are lots of vegetables and herbs that complement one another in the garden, there are some vegetables that should not be planted together. Ever. They’re like the opposite of corn, beans, and squash. Or if we were to allude to popular culture, growing some of these vegetables together […]
The first time I saw the mutant vegetables, I was scared. It was like a horror scene out of “The Walking Dead” or something. But then it hit me: Those were my carrots! That’s my corn! Oh my gosh, why is my tomato being so naughty? My mind raced with thoughts of how to solve […]
Deep in the volumes of garden lore, there are mysteries and codes, surprises and stories. Many have fascinated gardeners for years. Yet one remains mysterious: Why do tomatoes split? Your vines are growing tall and green, the flowers bud, and little round tomatoes appear. They’re perfect tiny green spheres at first. Slowly they grow and […]
As much as I love the idea of microbiomes and letting nature do its thing, when it comes to finding aphids on tomato plants in my garden, I tend to take things into my own hands. If you haven’t come across them, you probably will at some point in your gardening experience. Aphids are tiny […]
Let me tell you about the first time I grew broccoli. I planted three in a row. They were one of the first to grow in my garden that year, and I was proud. As they started to go from small heads to the kind you see in the grocery store, I realized I didn’t know how to cut broccoli off the plant. And honestly, I was confused why anyone would grow such a big plant for one head of broccoli.
As an avid food gardener, I can honestly say that the Bush Pickle cucumber is one of my all-time favorite plants to grow. This unassuming, squat little vine produces pint-sized powerhouses of flavor, charm, and attitude. If vegetables could talk, the bush pickle would probably say, “I may be short, but I’m dill-lightful!” Let’s take […]
Sometimes, gardening advice gets passed around like gossip. It could be gardening tips from your grandfather on your mother’s side or a neighbor’s anecdotal vegetable garden evidence. It’s easy to hear something a few times, begin to believe it, and then adopt it into your own gardening practice. Here are some gardening myths that I’ve heard passed around and how they are based on misinformation or outdated methods.
There are two ways to think about unique vegetable garden ideas: one is design and layout, and the other is what vegetables you grow. But why not combine them? There’s no rule that says you have to choose between interesting vegetables and fun garden design. At least, I don’t think there is.
Hey there, fellow green thumbs and food enthusiasts! We’ve embarked on an epic quest through our vast network of food gardeners and scoured the Internet’s deepest, darkest corners to unearth the absolute cream of the crop when it comes to garden-related humor. We’ve suffered through countless puns, endured a deluge of garden gags, and emerged […]
As an avid food gardener, I’ll admit it: I’ve fallen head over heels for a squash. And not just any squash. I’m talking about Dunja squash—a sleek, dark green, high-yielding zucchini variety that has become the diva of my summer garden. If you’ve never grown Dunja, prepare to be dazzled. If you have grown Dunja, […]
